Advertisement

Hang on for a minute...we're trying to find some more stories you might like.

Email This Story

Send email to this addressEnter Your NameAdd a comment hereVerification

When Carson Wentz went down against the Rams in week 14, few saw Nick Foles as someone who could fill in for Wentz after his MVP-level season.

Foles has had his struggles in the past and has bounced around the league since his sophomore season with the Eagle but has shown that he is capable of playing with the NFL’s greatest.

Most will probably think I’m crazy and I’m not saying Foles is a better quarterback than Tom Brady or Aaron Rodgers. But comparing their best games, Foles’s ceiling is higher. On Nov. 3, 2013 Nick Foles played the best game a quarterback has ever had in the history of the NFL.

In his third start after replacing an injured Michael Vick, Foles threw for 406 yards, seven touchdowns (tying the NFL record) in a 49-20 win over the Raiders, earning a perfect passer rating in the process. Only five quarterbacks had ever thrown seven touchdowns in one game before that day, none with a perfect passer rating. By comparison, Brady earned a perfect passer rating in October 2007 against the Miami Dolphins in the midst of pats almost undefeated season. Brady threw for 354 yard and six touchdowns in that game.

Yes, Nick Foles floundered with Jeff Fisher’s Rams. So did Jared Goff (3,804 passing yards and 28 TDs this season) and every other quarterback on their roster (Case Keenum, Sam Bradford). My point is, just like Jared Goff; don’t judge Nick Foles solely by his time with Jeff Fisher.

A Nick Foles we haven’t seen in five years showed himself against the Vikings in the NFC championship. Foles threw for 352 yards, 3 touchdowns and no interceptions against a team that allowed the fewest yards per game in the regular season.

This Sunday, what we’re left with is two teams going head-to-head, each with a chip on their shoulder. Tom Brady, fighting time to prove he’s still on top of his game, and Nick Foles, a backup quarterback people put so little stock in they were considered the underdogs at home throughout the playoffs and in the Super Bowl, despite having a top-10 offense and top-5 defense in the regular season (to the Patriots’ top offense, and 29th ranked defense in the regular season).

Foles doesn’t have to carry the Eagles squarely on his shoulders; this is a well-rounded football team on both sides with a strong running game. If Foles can harness the magic that helped him with that perfect game against the Raiders, he is more than capable of propelling this team to the a victory over the almighty Patriots.